Girl  on Fire

Girl on Fire by Eden Hart

Reviewed by Lily Andrews

The first book in Eden Hart’s dystopian adventure epic, “Girl on Fire,” centers on a young girl who battles a fatal disease and whose world almost falls apart when a deadly fever begins claiming thousands of lives, including people who matter to her.   Purchase Here.

According to Kassia’s most recent diagnosis, her myeloid leukemia, which was in the most aggressive stage, was becoming worse. As her family ruminated on her sickness on Thanksgiving night, they were stunned by the most spectacular display of red dots that glittered everywhere. As everyone looked up into the sky in shock and bewilderment, the air felt thinner, and there was a foul odor around them, despite her father’s assurance that they were most likely fireworks. Their greatest fears were, however, confirmed when dead pigeons started falling over their roof and onto the street below.

The death toll was in the tens of thousands and rising, and no one was safe. While humanity was on the brink of annihilation, a few individuals, like Kassia, were surprisingly immune to the illness. So was Lynxx, an Outlander who had, for sixteen years, blended in among humans without anybody noticing that he was a hybrid. Two months ago, he was assigned by his guardian to monitor the effects of the First Wave on the people of New York and document the rate at which they died of the outbreak. A lot of people were drawn to his physique, including Kassia, whom he shortly after fell in love with. But when he realized she had cancer and that, despite the outbreak, she had not died within the projected time frame, he was astonished and decided to use her as a test subject.

This story skillfully takes a fresh approach to the idea of “survival of the fittest.” It draws readers into the life of a protagonist who, in addition to a life-threatening disease, is also trying to cope with her mother’s rejection. As death stares at her, she is faced with tough decisions and bewilderment, throwing her hope of ever being loved or surviving away. The author also presents a character who questions human resiliency and is taken aback by their strength, joy, optimism, and love even at the most difficult times. This contradicts his long-held conviction in human inadequacy, sending him along a bizarre path that quickly earns him the term “traitor.”

This book’s startling turns and steadily increasing intensity kept me on the edge of my seat from the very beginning. Its sequence of horrific events that progressively lead to a deep comprehension of the nature of love and the things that can awaken any soul is captivating. With their interesting banter, curiosity, and wit, the well-developed characters complement one another, making the story a progressive one. With its slow-burning romance and heart-pounding action, “Girl on Fire” by Eden Hart is among the finest dystopian adventure epics that create immersive worlds that stir the imagination and enthrall the reader. Highly recommended for all young enthusiasts of post-apocalyptic books.

Cargo Hold 4

Cargo Hold 4 by Lonnie Busch

Reviewed by Douglas R. Cobb Cargo Hold 4 is a Science Fiction/Horror novel by Lonnie Busch that takes the old trope of a stowaway aboard your spaceship to a different level. Perhaps the most famous example of having a stowaway aboard one’s spaceship in a Science Fiction movie is Alien. In literature and in movies, the trope of having a stowaway aboard a ship or even a train is a time-honored one.  As with using any trope, it’s what an author does within the framework of one that attracts and holds the attention of the reader or fails to so. If you are a fan of the Science Fiction genre, I’d highly recommend that you check out Cargo Hold 4, a book that plays within the framework and also one that held my attention from the very beginning to the end.  Purchase Here. I don’t want to mention many spoilers, but it’s not a very big one to say that there’s a stowaway aboard the Gretel, the spaceship of interest in Cargo Hold 4. The woman commanding the Gretel is Captain Desna and Berlin is the spaceship’s First Mate. One twist here is that the rather noisy and troublesome stowaway is somehow not an organic being. According to the book’s very first paragraph: “Everything they’d discovered on Planet J–S was stored in Cargo Hold 4, but none of it was organic, according to their scanners.” I won’t give away how Busch deals with this issue. My desire to read how this could happen was one of the things that made me want to keep on reading, so I don’t want to ruin anybody else’s pleasure. Suffice it to say that Busch’s solution to this apparent problem of a nonorganic stowaway aboard the Gretel was a pretty cool one. One of the other problems Captain Desna and her crew is confronted with is the ethical one of deciding exactly what should be done about the irksome stowaway.  Two of the other things making life difficult for Desna, Berlin, and everyone else aboard the Gretel include the necessity of their handling an unplanned spacewalk and also how they should attempt to dislodge the unwelcome alien that had stowed away in Cargo Hold 4. I asked myself as I read Cargo Hold 4 questions like: “is the book’s plot fast-paced?” “Are the complications that Captain Desna and her crew have to deal with dealt with in a realistic way?” and “Does Cargo Hold 4 have a plot that holds my interest and keeps me want to keep on reading it?” I’m glad I read Cargo Hold 4. Besides being a captivating, page-turning Sci-Fi/Horror thriller, I liked reading the book for the added reason of discovering how the book’s author, Lonnie Busch, came up with inventive ways to play within the confines of the stowaway trope. I highly recommend Cargo Hold 4 for anyone who enjoys reading intelligent, fast-paced examples of the Sci-Fi/ Horror genre. Check it out today!    
First Place: Mystery/Thriller/Horror/Suspense./Second Place: Science Fiction
Tommy Rocket and the Goober Patrol

Tommy Rocket and the Goober Patrol by Thomas Kuhn

Reviewed by Teri Takle Nate lives a reasonably everyday life for a 10-year-old boy. Along with his parents, little brother, big sister, and grandmother, life survives with little excitement. The school exists, but Nate’s standard is to get by doing as little work as possible and to tolerate his admiring little brother.   Nothing exciting has ever happened to Nate until he met Tommy Rocket.  Purchase Here. Tommy Rocket is your typical 10-year-old boy, except he only has one human friend. Life with a wheelchair can be confining, but Tommy has adjusted well by creating his social group with A.I. robots that he invented with his father’s help. Normal? For his one human friend, Nate Turner, this relationship can be challenging as Tommy really does not understand what it takes to be a friend.   Tommy doesn’t usually use the telephone to call Nate. How would you react to a robotic helicopter tapping at your window with a coded message? Yes, you have to use a decoder ring to decrypt the message. Have you ever been treated as an obedient robot?  That is how Nate feels when he plays with Tommy. Learning how to relate to others is not Tommy’s strong point, but his robots are fascinating. Tommy’s basement is his playroom which isn’t your typical playroom.  Functioning robots are everywhere.  Each one has their own purpose which Tommy created.  These are Tommy’s true friends, his Goober Patrol.  Also, his creations are extraordinary.  Sentient, meaning they can think for themselves, best describes them.  Due to a special chip Tommy’s dad created, called a Prometheus Chip, each robot has some degree of freewill.    Now you can begin to see what intrigues Nate with this unusual friendship. Tommy Rocket and the Goober Patrol is a wonderfully engaging adventure for boys aged 8-12. I strongly feel that most children would thoroughly enjoy this book either to read by themselves or as read out loud to them.  The adventures are fun, and yes, even dangerous.   As for characterization, the reader knows Nate and Tommy well.   You can easily visualize each boy as well as the various robots. The illustrations are perfectly matched and enhance the story line. Moral character and doing the right thing is woven within the storyline.   This often-overlooked development is expertly exhibited as problematic for the characters which is realistic. The illustrations perfectly match the text. These are needed to show that Nate is black and Tommy is white. Nate comes from a blue-collar family and Tommy from white. Tommy’s family is well-educated, Nate’s is not. Through all these differences the friendship grows through Nate’s compassion, patience and morality. My only complaint was the reference to Marlin Perkins who passed away in 1986. Do kids today have any idea who this renowned zoologist is?    I would suggest to the author to rewrite that section and either use Steve Irwin, who is still well-known although deceased, or the Kratt Brothers.    The challenges of Tommy Rocket and the Goober Patrol are vocabulary and the length of the novel. Vocabulary might be difficult for the younger readers, but the story is so engaging that readers are likely to want to know any unfamiliar word. The book length can be overwhelming to some readers, but this author expertly engages the reader with this captivating tale on the first page. Tommy Rocket and the Goober Patrol is difficult to separate yourself from the book from the beginning. Warning: This book is addictive. I adored this novel, and even though I am far from being a 10-year-old boy, I have purchased and am currently reading the author’s other book.
First Place: Science Fiction/First Place: Children/Second Place: Humor/Satire
Project Ubermensch

Project Übermensch

Reviewed by Reyan Mishra Even the bibliophiles with the highest book-count would agree the most satisfying books are the ones that leave you wanting more. The thriller in question belongs to that very club. “Project Übermensch” is an intriguing sci-fi thriller that’s stitched on an intricate web of ambitions, deception, terror, and resilience.  Purchase Here. In 1943, experiments carried out by the U.S. Navy rendered the USS Eldridge deadly. Sailors are losing lives, and a lot that’s happening around seems inexplicable. Following a frightening accident, Third Officer Peter Smithwick deserts the army to live elsewhere under a new name. In 2024, over seven decades later, in the picturesque town of Kleary Creek, a mysterious, spiritual man by the name of Geoffrey Cannon enjoys a cult-like following. He is a healer who according to his devotees has been blessed with divine powers, Geoffrey magically saves the life of his neighbor, Orvin Littney who suffered a massive heart attack. However, Geoffrey’s spotless mystical image doesn’t last long as Kleary Creek residents including his devotees start turning up dead – each murdered in a gruesome manner. A number of theories emerge to explain the murders, however, Orvin believes Geoffrey might have a role to play in all that’s happening. But what’s the reality? Is Geoffrey really the puppeteer of death or is he himself a victim of some deadly force that’s beyond his understanding? The matter-of-the-fact way Busch constructs this fiction sparks a sense of vigilance in readers. You are going to want to be on your toes even days after finishing the book. Additionally, the tale introduces you to a complex set of characters – and the character development that you witness throughout the story is truly incredible. You can’t guess the true motives of some of the characters until the end. What’s more, the author very beautifully emphasizes both the actions and the emotions. That’s interesting to see as thrillers generally lay focus merely on the incidents instead of the emotions stirred by those incidents. Thanks to Busch’s fabulous craftwork with words, you become a part of the story as you begin imagining yourself in the shoes of the characters. If you are on the lookout for a satisfying sci-fi thriller that keeps you on the edge of your reading chair, “Project Übermensch” is a book you must not miss. With deep characters, terrifying events, and an untrustworthy setting, the book creates the perfect hair-raising atmosphere for the readers. All in all, you are in for an intriguing read that you can’t help discussing with your amigos.  
Third Place: Science Fiction
Neon Lights and Plane Tickets

Neon Lights and Plane Tickets: Sci-Fi Poetic Prose Collection by Eli Alemán

Reviewed by Lisa Brown-Gilbert

Spanning an eclectic variety of subjects, while featuring polished stanzas teeming with free verse and deeply insightful mentations, Neon Lights and Plane Tickets by artist, scientist, and author Eli Alemán artfully merges the poetic and the fantastical in this collection of creative prose narratives. For Eli Alemán this is her first published work.  Purchase Here.

At the outset of reading, there is instant connection to author Eli Alemán’s poetry. It is tantalizing to the imagination. Populated with creatively fluent passages which draw the mind into often sinister and imaginative, otherworldly scenes, that shrewdly guide readers through a cultivated series of universal wonderlands brimming with themes of horror, science-fiction as well as the dystopian.

Moreover, this journey through the heart and mind of author Eli Alemán not only exceeds the bounds of imagination with inventive science fiction within poetic verses but also uncommonly delves into the common topics like Love, Humanity, Food, and Music, with works such as, Cosmic Love Theory: Infinite Cosmic Ballet, Food Gourmet Escapades, Bloodied Veil, Acrid Skies, Visceral Cries, Melodious Rhapsody and Matchmaker Cloud just to name a few. In total there are many more as well, as the book houses a collection of over 60 poems. It offers a lot to choose from with each poem as quality as the last.

Altogether I thoroughly enjoyed Neon Lights and Plane Tickets, by Eli Alemán.   It was easy to connect with this plentiful and diverse sharing of free-flowing verses, which offered engaging, detailed imagery fueled by fantastically drawn stanzas. In fact, author Aleman’s writing is so effective that I was often left with a residue of vivid, intelligent as well as enlightening imprinting from its unforgettable passages, which did very well to hold my attention rapt. While the entire collection of poetry flowed well, was well written, and kept me entertained and attentive to the worlds built through the author’s passages, there were several that stayed with me long after I finished reading.   Some are: Sheen, Phantasmagoric Reverie, Monstrous Genesis, Touchscreen, Grimly Ever After: Forevermore Elixir, Empires of Thought, and Celestial Bodies.

 Overall, while the titles alone were enough to pique my curiosity, it was the entirely distinctive nature of the poems that left me reeling with the memorable stunning vision of worlds never before experienced. This is a poetry collection that is definitely worthy of adding to the personal library of any fan of well written, uniquely posed poetic works, as it does well to leave a lasting literary impression.

 

The Zone

The Zone: A Cyberpunk Thriller (The Zone, #1) by Stu Jones

Book Reviewed by Timea Barabas

A thought-provoking cyberpunk thriller, “The Zone” by Stu Jones, is an immersive tale that tingles all the senses. In an apocalyptic future, what remains of humanity insists on surviving while the elites reach for absolute domination. This futuristic dystopia may feel familiar to most readers, like an intense dream that lingers on into daybreak.  Purchase Here.

After a post-nuclear global event, a few livable hubs like Neo Terminus remain where survivors struggle to build a life. However, the strictly regulated access to limited resources creates a fertile ground for criminality.

The population seems enslaved by hi-tech visors that become an extension of their bodies. The constant stream of entertainment diverts their attention from the gloom and savagery around them. Visors leave many wearers oblivious to the rot but also the timid beauty that creeps along the infested streets.

While humanity clings to the brink of total collapse, the NTPD struggles to maintain order. Officer Chance Griffin fights crime alongside his devoted partner while trying to secure enough funds to pay for the surgery his infant son desperately needs. Just as the fragile family life starts slipping away, new hope finds its way to Chance.

Out of absolute desperation, Chance succumbs to the siren’s song and decides to join the biggest social experiment turned live entertainment, The Zone. This is the worst part of the old city, infested with dangerous criminals. Those convicted of severe crimes are sent to the walled-off sector and left to fend for themselves.

Building on the Ancient Roman gladiator fights, this wasteland becomes monetized by streaming live battles for entertainment. Elite officers who undergo bio-technological enhancements are also thrown into The Zone with the sole mission of survival.

Lured by the prospect of financial security and the possibility of treating his son, Chance sheds the only life he knew to equip the Enforcer uniform. As soon as the shock caused by the sudden transition to the new life wears off, Chance seems to soar to new heights. However, the elevation gives him a shocking perspective of secret plans unfolding over the general population.

As a veteran law enforcement officer, Stu Jones leans on his knowledge and experience to create a realistic universe populated by flesh and bone characters. “The Zone” is a masterfully layered book that invites personal and societal introspection.

Artefactum

Artefactum by J.E. Tobal

Book Reviewed by Daniel Ryan Johnson

While Artefactum begins with a hilariously bizarre form of travel through the multiverse involving a sculpture of an Aboriginal fertility goddess, the story grows darker and more serious the deeper you dive. Although the book maintains an offbeat and darkly comedic element throughout, author J.E. Tobal does not let this interfere with the more profound themes the story explores.  Purchase Here.

All the characters in Artefactum are deeply flawed people who often end up hurting those they love and getting in the way of their own happiness. However, while these flaws can, at times, make you angry at the poor choices that are made, they are also the reason that they are all so relatable.

J.E. Tobal combines humor, sci-fi, vulgarity, and philosophy in a perfect cocktail served up for the reader by bartending protagonist Sam Cattan. As Sam hops through time and space, he makes a thorough exploration of all the lows and highs of the great experiment known as humanity. From the first page to the last, it is a challenge to put the book down, as each new twist makes you eager for the next.

With worlds to match everything we desire, along with everything we dread, you will be pulled along as Sam continues to try and build his own little perfect world. Although the tools he has to accomplish this task may be far beyond what any of us have to work within the real world, he struggles with creating his ideal life just as much as anyone in our corner of the multiverse.

In Artefactum, Tobal achieves the rare accomplishment of creating a story that is equal parts absurd and poignant. The twists and turns of the novel make it a compelling read that will keep you guessing about the true nature of both the universes created by the author and that in which we live. With the powers available to Sam through the artefactum that are scattered throughout the multiverse, he is able to continually answer the question, “What if…?” with the response of, “Let’s find out.”

 

Dark Dweller

Dark Dweller by Garith Worthington

Book reviewed by Lilly Andrews

“The future belongs to those who learn more skills and combine them in creative ways.”― Robert Greene.

So it is with “Dweller”, written by Gareth Worthington, a multi-award storyteller. Here, a helium mining mission to Jupiter by a team of explorers and scientists from the Earth is on course. Helium is the second most abundant element in the universe but it’s interestingly so scarce on the Earth. The team understands that acquiring it means getting rich as proved by the many scientists who have become billionaires after such operations.  Purchase Here.

Unlike what they expected, Jupiter’s orbital path seems altered and an escape pod revolving towards their vessel seems to not only jeopardize the mission but their lives seem threatened. The team suddenly stands mesmerized at the site of a young girl trapped in the pod. Her strange demeanor and fearful words are both scary. Who is she? A plan decades in the making is almost being ruined. Is she in danger or is she a danger to the mission?

A new assignment to pick a research scientist in Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons is about to derail their dream further. They are literally balancing on a knife’s edge. Aggravating challenges like gravitational shift, rapid temperature change, extreme nausea, radiation, and unimaginable cold atmospheres tear the team apart. It is now the survival of the fittest.

This ode boasts strong lucid language and solid action that will make you clench your fists and heave your chest in anticipation and thrill. Further, the oeuvre is peppered with an intense emotional atmosphere as exhibited in the outspoken and radical nature of the characters. Like a medieval troubadour, the sceneries careen through an array of emotions that are by turns poignant and vibrant. This leaves readers searching and hoping that the next chapter will introduce a ray of light to the already intense narrative.

This is a solid visceral read for everyone with an interest in knuckle-hard science fiction from one of the literary giants of our time. It is irrefutably several notches above what you usually get in any fiction work.

 

 

Blood Moon

Blood Moon: The Rising Series: Book 2 by Heather Graham and Jon Land

Book Reviewed by Russell Ilg

APOCYALPSE POW!

Those who thought the notion of teenagers saving the world ended with this season’s “Stranger Things” need to think again. Heather Graham and Jon Land go that great television series one better in the equally great BLOOD MOON, a riotous, rollicking, roller-coaster ride that makes us feel like kids again.  Purchase Here.

The book is actually a sequel to “The Rising,” the name now born by the series as a whole. For those unfamiliar with how the journey started, that prequel introduced us to high school All-American football player Alex Chin. Alex is the ultimate illegal alien because he’s actually from another world, smuggled to Earth in possession of a secret that’s the only thing that can prevent the total destruction of our, and now his, world.

We found out near the end of “The Rising” that the secret in question is actually an organic computer chip implanted in Alex’s brain. And, while it may be the only thing that can save humanity, it’s slowly killing him. BLOOD MOON pretty much jumps off from that point, with Alex and his former tutor, and current love interest, Samantha Dixon on the run from enemies both human and otherwise. They’re once again aided by Raiff, an adult refugee from Alex’s world whose own emotions are thrown into a tizzy when Elaina, the woman he has loved from afar since he was a boy himself, appears up close.

Elaina is Alex’s birth mother who sent him across the spacebridge, kind of a wormhole on steroids, with Raiff when Alex was a mere infant. Only Elaina understands the significance of the four mysterious keys Alex and Sam are chasing around the world, following cryptic clues outlined in an ancient manuscript written in a language only Alex can decipher. Having relied on Sam’s tutoring to survive high school, he now finds himself imbued with new skills and knowledge as a result of that leaky computer chip, and BLOOD MOON is as much a race to save Alex as it is to save the entire world.

Don’t let the science fiction label dissuade you from digging in. Graham and Land give us only what we need to know and not a shred more. That makes the sometimes fearsome, and sometimes throwback, technology accessible for even the least geeky among us. And readers will especially enjoy both the eerie origins of the Golem legend brought literally to life, as well as a brilliant homage to the skeletal swordsmen featured in the original “Jason and the Argonauts.”

Graham and Land have concocted an action-adventure tale of rare pathos and heart, layering emotion atop a constant stream of escalating set pieces that turn BLOOD MOON into one long, unabated chase scene that goes from zero to sixty in a nanosecond. The book’s relentless pacing leaves us even more breathless than our young heroes as we race alongside them, cheering every step of the way. This is storytelling at its absolute best, a smooth and savory blend of “Terminator” and “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” blended with the best from the old “Outer Limits” TV show. Tumultuous and terrific, BLOOD MOON is an instant classic that’s a masterpiece of form, function and fun.

Saw the Forest

Saw the Forest by Patrick McConnell

Book Reviewed by Lisa Brown-Gilbert

A read which keeps your heart as invested as your mind, Patrick L. McConnell’s Saw the Forest explores life through a multi-faceted lens, bringing attention to aspects of the human condition, wrapped in layers of emotion and motive through the experiences of life. Presented with a grove of eclectic characters, each on their own life’s journey but whose paths cross in dynamic and life-altering ways. Purchase Here.

A deft storyteller, author Patrick L. McConnell, captures the attention quickly with his literate narrative, which features a well-drawn cast of characters, each as interesting as the next to
meet, as well as somehow entangled within the same web of a diverse community collective. Moreover, the story divulges uniquely posed aspects of human nature, exemplified through the characters, inclusive of traits like love, bravado, religion, violence, as well as politics. Moreover, skillfully presented amidst relatable interactions which create an interwoven mosaic of human frailty and strengths, making exciting fuel for this evocative, character driven read.

Immediately, this literate, detail focused narrative brings into view the Right family; father, Artemus a doctor, Mother Taniaz, and their sons, Philip and Adam. The brothers are a unique pair, in that, younger brother Adam takes care of his elder brother Philip, who is considerably larger and stronger than him, but his mind is that of a child. As the family dynamic changes over time, after having lost both parents, the pair of brothers live humble lives as adults, still sharing a close bond. Adam, quietly stalwart, socially awkward, even reticent but well-meaning remains his brother’s faithful keeper who at times can become an unintentionally aggressive and intimidating handful.

Next, we meet Maryanne Whipple. She presents an intensely sympathetic character, and at age 24, she is attractive, and intelligent, but also scarred both physically and mentally. Additionally, having been recently released from service in the military, Maryanne bears a hard set life as she lives life from a wheelchair scarred from war and challenged with a mostly missing right leg and a damaged left, which makes finding a direction in life an uncertainty. And although she is somewhat shell shocked, albeit traumatized, she also harbors an empathetic nature as well as a brave heart.

As a matter of fact, each ensuing chapter adds further depth to the story with the addition of new characters, each being an intriguing inclusion to the story, adding another thread to the web of life especially when they intersect with the more prominent characters. Also meanwhile, an undercurrent of mystery flows throughout the story as machinations of characters and events occur via the receipt of mysterious emails coming to nun sister Alana Orrick, the context of which is often peculiar but also leads to life altering illumination.

All in all, I absolutely enjoyed Saw the Forest, by author Patrick L. McConnell. I am definitely a fan, especially after having read his previous work, The Gene Rasp. In particular, I find his style of writing, welcoming, entertaining and proficiently literate. He provides plenty of interesting action, characters, settings, and storylines. Additionally, his adept storytelling abilities escort you on a literary journey that is not only easily appealing, intricately detailed, and filled with intriguing personas, but also captures the imagination by virtue of the refreshing insertion of science fiction/fact-based elements. I definitely recommend this as well his other work as they are well worth the read and would make great movies.